Draco's heart swelled when he heard her speak the words he'd been waiting seven years to hear again, but it also ached knowing that his secret might jeopardize their relationship. She pressed her lips to his once again and slid herself into his waiting embrace. She loved the way their bodies fit together effortlessly, unlike the way she could never quite seem to get comfortable in Ron's arms. She snuggled herself next to him, resting her head on his shoulder, his arm naturally wrapped around her waist. He gently placed his lips against her forehead, and tenderly whispered, "I love you."

"Ahem," Both their heads turned to the portrait hanging next to the fireplace. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I must advise you that Mr. Potter and Miss Weasley have just entered the library. They will be arriving here shortly."

"Oh," Hermione declared, sitting up and away from Draco, much to his displeasure. "I completely forgot about them!" Sensing his disappointment at her sudden departure, she leaned in and quickly kissed him before walking to the kitchen and writing 'Carrot Cake' on the parchment. She held up the beautiful dessert for Draco to see, and explained, "It's Harry's favorite. I thought it might help soften the blow when we tell him about us."

"Good idea. But don't you think it might make him a little suspicious to walk in and find us waiting for him with a cake?" He asked.

"It might," Hermione replied, placing the cake on the coffee table and taking a seat next to him on the couch. "But its his birthday on Monday, so hopefully he'll just think its for that. Plus, the cake is a signal I have worked out with Ginny. She knows if she comes in and finds us waiting with one its because we are planning to tell Harry about us. That way she won't be caught off guard and can help run interference if needed." Draco nodded his head in admiration. She really was always ten steps ahead of everyone else.

"You're amazing." He marveled.

She blushed, but had no time to respond as her two best friends appeared through the portal. Ginny's eyes immediately spotted the cake and darted from it to Hermione who gave her a barely noticeable nod indicating 'yes, this means what you think it means.' Ginny discreetly smiled at the couple on the couch and ushered Harry into the sitting room.

"Good evening, Harry, Ginny." Draco always used proper manners, even when addressing friends. It was the only product of his Malfoy upbringing that he didn't despise.

Harry bobbed his head in acknowledgement and asked, "What's all this?"

"Its a birthday surprise, obviously." Hermione answered. Draco could hear the nervousness in her voice, but Harry seemed not to notice.

"Woah, you didn't have to do this." Harry replied in the polite way people do when what they really mean is, 'I am so glad you did this.'

"Well, I figured Friday is the best day for a birthday celebration... and this is the last Friday before your big day... so I planned this little surprise." Hermione stammered.

"You knew about this?" Harry turned to his fiance.

"Of course." Ginny lied with conviction. "Why do you think we took the long way back from the Great Hall tonight?"

"Oh, I don't know..." Harry turned to face his housemates seated across from him. "I thought it was to give these two extra alone time, like we've been doing for the last month or two."

Hermione and Draco looked at each other, for a moment, dumbfounded before Hermione turned to Ginny and accused, "You told him?!"

All eyes snapped back to Harry as he declared, "No, but you just did."

"Wha-?" Hermione gaped at him.

"You think I didn't notice the way you two look at each other? Or the way you're always finding reasons to stay here alone together?" Harry gave them a 'how-oblivious-do-you-think-I-am' look.

"I... We..." Hermione simply could not think straight until Draco slid his hand into hers, and gave it a small squeeze. "How long have you known?"

"I've had my suspicions since about a week after Ron left." Harry admitted. "I brought it up to Ginny, but you'll be happy to know she always kept your secret." He turned to address the red-head, "A fact I'm a bit peeved about by the way. Why didn't you just confirm it when I asked?"

"I promised Hermione!" Ginny defended herself. "And I never break my promises. Plus, it wasn't my business to tell. I knew they'd tell you in their own time. If you were so sure, you could have just asked either of them rather than expecting me to break my word."

"You're right. I could have. We all could have handled things differently. But the point is... Hermione is involved with Draco, and quite honestly, I have never seen her happier." Harry surprised everyone by being so supportive. He turned his attention solely to Draco for the first time since entering the cottage, "But just know this, Malfoy... If you hurt her, in any way, you will regret it."

Draco knew Harry meant every word, and he was grateful to his former foe for his loyalty to Hermione. Although he hoped she would understand when he finally told her the truth, he knew there was a chance she would not, and he was glad she had friends who would always be there for her. "I don't doubt it. And I swear to you, I will do everything in my power to never hurt her." He stole a quick glance at her, trying to hide the fear in eyes that his unavoidable eventual admission of the truth would unintentionally do what he had just sworn not to do.

"I hope that is true, Draco. But you have hurt her in the past," Hermione attempted to break in, but Harry continued, "And although you do seem to have genuinely changed, the way you used to be is constantly bobbing around in the back of my consciousness. You must know that I will do everything in my power to protect the people I consider to be my family."

"I know, Potter. I think we all know; as we've all seen firsthand just how far you're willing to go to protect them." Draco of course was referring to Harry sacrificing himself to Voldemort to save everyone else at Hogwarts. "I can't tell you how much I respect your fierce loyalty."

Harry simply nodded, indicating he had made his point and was ready to move on from the subject, but Hermione was not willing to let her best friend think the old Draco was lurking somewhere under the surface. "Draco," she locked eyes with him, "Would you mind joining me in the study for a moment?"

"Um..." Draco had no idea why she would need to meet with him so urgently at such a time as this. "Sure."

Hermione excused the two of them and pulled him behind her into the study. "We have to tell them... everything."

"What?... No. There's no reason for that. You know, and that is good enough for me." Draco wasn't trying to argue with her, he just didn't feel the need to tell everyone. He thought they might think he was trying to excuse the way he'd treated them all those years. Or that they would think he was trying to make himself look good.

"There is a reason." She stomped her foot in frustration. "They need to know that the 'old you' was never the real you. They need to understand that there is nothing that would make you go back to behaving like that. They need to see that who you are now is who you were back then." Hermione began to tear up. "They need to know that the man I fell in love with has always been inside you, but couldn't come out because it was too dangerous."

Draco finally understood. She was asking him to tell them the truth about his allegiance with Snape so they could be in love without a cloud of doubt looming over them. So her friends could accept their relationship without reservation, saving her from having to defend it again and again. "Okay."

She looked at him expectantly, unsure she'd heard him correctly. "Okay?"

"Yes." He nodded. "Let's tell them."

She threw herself into his arms and purred, 'Thank you' into his ear.

Harry was halfway through his second piece of cake when they emerged from the study. "I told him we should wait for you two," Ginny apologized, "But he said 'this is what they get for keeping me in the dark for so long.'"

"Don't worry about it, Ginny." Hermione smiled. "Honestly, I don't think I could eat any right now anyway."

"But it was your idea." Harry mumbled, crumbs tumbling from his mouth.

"Honestly, Harry, the cake was only to soften you up so we could tell you about us." Hermione slid her arm through Draco's and entwined her finger with his as they reclaimed their seats on the couch. "But as it turned out, we didn't even need it."

"In that case, I'm glad you waited and told me in your own way." Harry laughed.

Hermione nudged Draco in the ribs and gave him an encouraging 'you're on' look. He grinned hesitantly at her before clearing his throat. "Actually, there's still a bit more we... I need to tell you." His eyes shifted to Ginny. "Both of you."

Ginny shot Hermione a questioning look. "There's more?"

"Yes." Draco answered although the question was directed toward his girlfriend. "But it will be better if we move this conversation to the common room." Harry and Ginny looked at each other then back to Draco; utter confusion played across both their faces.

The four students were met by ten pairs of welcoming eyes. Draco lit a fire in the fireplace and they all found seats near it. Harry and Ginny waited patiently as Hermione encouraged Draco by wrapping one arm around his waist and sliding her other hand into his. Harry was caught off guard by the natural intimacy they shared. He'd seen Hermione struggle to connect with Ron during their entire relationship, but with Draco it was effortless. He wondered how it was possible for them to be so in sync with each other in less than two months. Then he realized... that's how it had been for he and Ginny once they finally got together. When its right, it is natural. He gave Hermione a knowing smile, hoping it was enough to convey that he understood she was in love with their blonde housemate. Her eyes twinkled toward him, and he knew that she had received the message.

Draco drew a deep breath and began. "What I am about to tell you isn't easy for me, so I'm asking you to let me get it all out before trying to ask any questions. I promise to answer any that you do have when I am done, but I need to say all of what I have to say first." Harry and Ginny nodded, indicating they understood and would respect his request. "Okay... As you know, my godfather, Severus Snape, was in love with Harry's mother Lily." Harry's eyes darted to the portrait of his parents. They both smiled reassuringly, conveying to him they knew everything Draco needed to say and that they were supportive of it. "They were childhood friends and maintained that friendship for many years while attending Hogwarts together. Their relationship became strained when he began delving into the dark arts, and as a result, he never told her how he felt about her. When she married James, he knew he had lost the only chance at happiness he would ever have, so he retreated into the only thing he had left... dark magic. He became a death eater, and was part of Voldemort's inner circle. At that time, he was a full-fledged supporter. It wasn't until he heard that James and Lily's son," he paused to acknowledge Harry directly, "was marked for death that he began to question his allegiance. He knew that Voldemort would destroy anyone who stood in the way of him killing Harry, so he went to Dumbledore for help." Draco glanced at the former headmaster's portrait and was greeted with a cheerful nod. "Dumbledore passed the word along to the Potters, and they were able to put safeguards in place, but..." His voice trailed off. There was no need for Draco to finish. Everyone in the room was painfully aware of Peter Pettigrew's betrayal that led to the death of Harry's parents. "The moment he held Lily's dead body in his arms, was the moment he vowed to put an end to Voldemort. You see, he knew about the Horcruxes. He knew Voldemort would be back someway, somehow, so he did the one thing he could do... he prepared for battle." Draco snuck a peek at Hermione who was rubbing her thumb in circles on the back of his hand. "But he didn't prepare to fight with magic. He learned to use the one weapon Voldemort could never understand nor see coming. He learned to fight with undying love. He worked closely with Dumbledore, and at his suggestion, when I was six years old, Severus offered to "tutor" me over the summers. Since he was my godfather and had been so close to Voldemort, my father readily agreed. What Lucius failed to realize was that Severus was not training me to be a "good little soldier" ready to fight alongside Voldemort upon his inevitable return. In fact, it was quite the opposite... he was teaching me about the beauty muggles bring to this world. We even lived in a muggle neighborhood. I had muggle friends. He made sure I knew everything my family and their friends said about blood status was absolute rubbish. He raised me to be a double-agent just as he was. So I guess, technically, he did teach me everything my father wanted me to learn, but he only did so so I would know how to act like the perfect son of the perfect death eater." Draco paused once more and tried to read Harry and Ginny's reactions. They both stared at him, bewilderment plastered across their faces. "The most important magical skill he taught me was Occlumency. By the end of that first summer, I was skilled enough to fool my father. My mother never attempted Legilimency against me. I found out in my fifth year that it was because she knew and supported what Severus was doing for me. She, Severus and Dumbledore were the only people who knew the truth about me all those years. And they are the only reason I am alive. Many times after I came to school and especially after Voldemort returned, I just wanted to give up. It got too hard. I hated acting like blood status mattered to me. I hated having to treat you," he looked at Harry, "and especially, Hermione the way I did. But I knew from the moment we walked through those doors that if I didn't treat her the way my father expected me to treat non-purebloods, he would hear about it and he would know something was off. So I acted the way everyone expected me to. I was the perfect Slytherin, but I was miserable. Then Voldemort forced me to make up for my father's mistakes, by becoming a death eater and giving his army access to Hogwarts, and I thought it would be better if I just ended my life." He'd never spoken of these details to Hermione, and he felt her stiffen next to him, but he had to keep going or he would surely break down. "Dumbledore caught me atop the Astronomy Tower one night just as I was about to jump. He brought my mother here and along with Severus they convinced me my future was worth fighting for. From then on, I remained wholly focused on my mission... stopping Voldemort. After the Battle of Hogwarts, Professor McGonagall learned the truth about me from strategically placed memory vials in books only she would have interest in reading. At my request, she has not told any of the other teachers, except for Hagrid, but she only told him because she knew as close as he is to you all, he'd never have accepted me back without knowing the truth."

As he finished, Ginny wiped a stray tear from her eye and Harry dropped his eyes to his lap. After several minutes of silence, Harry faced the real Draco for the first time knowing the full truth. "This changes things a bit."